Over the years, gaming machines have grown in both sophistication and gaming features to maintain player interest. Gaming machines have gone from relatively simple devices providing a player with an opportunity to win cash awards to sophisticated, multi-media devices. Even more, the games presented on the gaming machines have become increasingly complex with games having one or more bonus games or different game modes that allow a player to participate in a community game or a tournament. While the gaming machines and games have become increasingly complex, gaming devices have become easier to change, modify, or expand feature sets by downloading new software packages. However, the security of the gaming devices needs to be maintained. As a result, various authentication and validation methods have been developed to maintain the integrity and security of the gaming devices. Nevertheless, there is a continuing need for authentication and validation techniques for gaming devices.